Wall Sits Just Once A Week May Help Maintain Lower Blood Pressure

THURSDAY, Oct. 1, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Isometric exercises like wall sits may help lower your blood pressure.

And just one session a week could help you maintain those healthier numbers.

A team led by Harry Swift of King’s College London studied 100 adults with an average age of 37 who had normal to high-normal blood pressure. Eighty were assigned to do wall sits three times a week.

After four weeks, their systolic blood pressure — the top number in a blood pressure reading — had dropped by an average of about 9.5 points compared with the control group.

For the next month, participants either kept the same schedule, cut back or stopped.

Cutting back to once a week still left systolic pressure about 6.6 points lower than at the start.

But three sessions a week delivered a much bigger benefit — down nearly 14 points.

When participants stopped exercising, the improvements reversed.

“Even minimal engagement can help maintain significant benefits," the authors wrote, making it a practical option for people with limited time.

They said isometric exercise may help blood vessels relax so blood flows more easily.

Longer studies are now needed.

The study was published Sept. 29 in the journal BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine.

More information

The American Heart Association has more on high blood pressure.

SOURCE: HealthDay TV, Oct. 1, 2026